Forty years of IVF history: opening up access to the Louise Brown archive

Louise Brown was the first baby born after in vitro fertilisation. The Louise Brown collection at Bristol Culture documents her birth and life and the lives of her parents. Academics working on research projects in the field are interested in the material, which crosses the boundaries of medical and social sciences. We anticipate wider demand for the material because 2018 is the 40th anniversary of Louise’s birth, and there will be an exhibition on IVF at the Science Museum in London

Archive and museum items will be professionally archived and they will be available for public consultation in Bristol and for loan to the Science Museum. We will repackage, preserve and conserve the work to ensure long-term access to the material. We will digitise audio-visual items which are currently inaccessible owing to their format and are liable to deterioration. We will raise awareness of the catalogued collection via links with other archives and research centres.

A display of selected material in permanent galleries at Bristol Culture's M Shed museum will be launched in a public event attended by Louise Brown.